27/07/2005 - A joint project,
between WWF Indochina's Vietnam Country Programme
and Nui Chua National Park (Ninh Thuan Province),
was recently launched, in order to strengthen
the marine management capacity of the park.
Training programmes in socio-economic surveys
and coral reef monitoring were implemented,
with a long-term goal to develop a marine
protected area (MPA) for the national park.
The project, "Strengthening Capacity
for Marine Conservation and Poverty Alleviation,"
implemented with the support of Seimenpuu
Foundation (Finland) and National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation, began with the donation
of key equipment, including computers, a Global
Positioning System (GPS) and related software.
This was in combination with training of staff
and field rangers in Geographic Information
Systems (GIS) mapping, socio-economic assessment
and coral reef monitoring.
"We are very excited about this project.
It helps provide us with the capacity to plan
and manage local marine resources sustainably
and to develop local solutions for improving
the economic situation here," said Nguyen
Huu Hoan, Director of the Nui Chua National
Park.
Located in one of Vietnam's poorest coastal
areas, Nui Chua National Park includes a marine
area of over 7,000 hectares. Once a nature
reserve, the area was designated a national
park in 2003.
Staff members were trained in conducting
socio-economic surveys of households in and
around the park. These surveys help assess
the socio-economic conditions in the region,
which will be monitored while implementing
specific measures - based on community feedback
- for improving livelihoods. A major long-term
goal of the project is the establishment of
a marine protected area (MPA) management plan
that protects both the region's marine ecosystem
and the livelihoods of local people.
"The coral reef ecosystems at Nui Chua
are nationally significant, and include many
unique marine species that are now under mounting
pressure," noted Keith Symington, Marine
Programme Coordinator with WWF-Indochina's
Vietnam Country Programme. "The challenge
is to manage these ecosystems sustainably,
meeting conservation measures, and therefore
ensuring future generations can derive their
income from local marine resources".
The project partners hope to demonstrate
that marine conservation and future socio-economic
security can go hand in hand. Preliminary
survey results revealed that local communities
support marine conservation, and want to develop
livelihood opportunities, that help reduce
pressures (such as overfishing) on marine
resources. Many opportunities were identified,
including sustainable aquaculture and nature-based
tourism.
Other planned activities include an innovative
community-based planning exercise, called
"3D modeling," in which local fishermen
and other stakeholders identify MPA management
strategies interactively. A series of community
workshops, aimed at developing a MPA management
plan, as well as prioritizing MPA management
indicators, are also planned in the near future.
